


Awakening-II

by metalcowboy



Series: Fireteam Geo [2]
Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-29
Updated: 2019-10-29
Packaged: 2021-01-06 07:02:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21222515
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/metalcowboy/pseuds/metalcowboy
Summary: With their fireteam back together at last, Dusty and Stone catch Citrine up on the events of the past few years





	Awakening-II

A gut wrenching wave of energy coursed through Citrine-9’s body. She flew over the cosmodrome, the ground covered in snow and a strange red and grey substance strewn about like pollen in the springtime. She gazed upon Saladin’s cold eyes as the horrors of his past rose once again to haunt his every waking moment. Six faceless guardians stared down a great machine god, and emerged victorious. She saw the Traveler, in all its glory, trapped by some wretched device. She watched as the Cabal Emperor’s gargantuan flagship landed in orbit above nessus, and the sinister sound of Calus’s voice beckoning the inhabitants of earth to his little game. Cayde’s last moments, humanity’s arrival at the dreaming city and the release of the taken curse. A knot formed in her stomach as she watched Ada-1 running through the woods, alone and afraid. She met the drifter, although he did not meet her. She acknowledged his charm, but stayed wary of his motives.

Above all else, she saw Stone and Dusty fighting for their lives. They frantically ran towards her as she sealed herself in Oryx’s pocket of the ascendant plane in a last-ditch effort to destroy him. The pain in both their eyes as she disappeared for what they thought was the last time. The countless months they spent searching for any tangible lead to find her. The gap that grew in their friendship as a result of each of them blaming themselves for her disappearance. She tried to cry out, but all she could do was watch, helplessly, as the two closest friends she’d ever had were thrown off a cabal ship by Ghaul as effortlessly as if he was sweeping leaves away with his boot. The fear and desperation growing within them as they struggled to reclaim their light and their identity. They didn’t contact each other for almost two years, only when Dusty found her lost artifact on the ruined lunar surface did they join together once more.

But join together they did. Despite the terror she felt, she saw something great. She saw the two of them each reawaken the light within them, and become a beacon of hope not only for the guardians, but for all of humanity. She saw stone charge Ghaul head on, and their epic battle. She saw dusty stare down an army of fallen, and emerge victorious, revolver smoking in the wind.

She saw the traveler awaken. And oh, what a marvelous sight that was.

“I wonder what she’s lookin’ at” Stone-7’s voice reverberated on the cold concrete as he paced across the room. Citrine hovered cross legged several inches off the floor, her back perfectly straight and her hands resting on her knees. There was a mixture of pain and fear on her face.

“‘Spose she’ll tell us when she’s done,” Dusty-13 called out from the corner of the room, his legs on a table, arms crossed, and cabal-skin cowboy hat draped over his eyes. “Not like she’s gonna disappear again, considering we’re blocking the doorway out.”

“Well yeah, I just… You can’t blame me for worrying, you know. We just got her back”

“I hear ya, pardner. She’s gonna be just fine. We all will.”

Citrine slowly lowered to the ground. Stone rushed over to her, eager to discuss what she’d seen. Dusty adjusted his hat and slowly stood up, making his way over while maintaining a small distance.

Citrine’s eyes opened slowly, her gaze fixed to the floor.

“We failed,” she said miserably. “The traveler blessed us with this light, with this gift, and we let it down when it needed us most.”

She looked between Dusty and Stone, who were passing their own confused glances back at her, and immediately burst into tears. Stone, startled by the sudden hysterics, caught her in his arms and rested his chin atop her head with an audible clink. She sobbed into his chest, although her holographic cyan eyes were perfectly dry.

“It’s alright, love. You’re alright. We’re not going anywhere,” Stone said over her sobs, cradling the back of Citrine’s head with his hand and holding her tightly. “You’re safe, you’re home.”

“She just experienced the whole of the last three or so years in, oh,” Dusty checked his watch. “Seven minutes. She’s probably gonna need some counseling. I’ll give Devrim a ping.”

Citrine broke away from Stone’s embrace and rushed over to Dusty, clinging tightly to his midsection. Dusty threw his hands up in surprise, and then brought them to rest on her upper back.

“Hey, lady,” Dusty said softly, giving her a firm yet reassuring pat on the back. “Miss me?”

“You two-” her words caught in her throat as she choked down another bout of sobs. “-you two could have died!”

“What’cha mean coulda? Last I checked we do it all the time!” Dusty smiled at her. She was not amused.

“I mean it. For real, you could have died your last death. It would have been the end of you, and your light.”

“You saw for yerself, didn't cha? Sure, we coulda. But we didn’t. Stone here saw to that.”

“Ghaul was a formidable opponent. If he’d had more time to train with his light-fueled abilities, I don’t know that I could have done it alone. But he was inexperienced, and the traveller helped me take him down. You shoulda seen me, I kicked his- oh. You did see that, huh?”

“I did. You were incredible!”

Stone scratched the back of his head. “I’m just that good, I guess.”

Dusty shook his head. “Let’s getcha to see the vanguard. Ikora’s gonna want a debrief of everything you saw in there, and Hawthorne’ll getcha set up in the clan. You get a nifty little banner to put on your ship-” Dusty stopped abruptly.

Citrine had begun trembling, and collapsed to the floor. She was conscious, but her mind was in another place.

The boys both rushed to her side. “What’s wrong?” Stone asked urgently.

“‘Trine? You alright? Stay with me, girl!” Dusty said grimly.

Citrine’s voice shook. “My mind was so preoccupied with everything you two had been through, it didn’t have time to think about Oryx. The ascendant plane, it was- it was hell. My mind can’t comprehend it well enough to describe it, I just- even thinking about it fills me with despair. I had no idea how much time had passed before you two found me, I just-” her words cut off as she began crying again.

Dusty and stone both fell back from citrine, to give her room to breathe. They’d both never seen her this emotionally distraught before. It was clear her time in the ascendant realm had left its mark on her.

Dusty put his hand on her shoulder. “Just forget it for now, y’hear? Ikora can wait until you’re good and ready to talk about that. If she starts to get pushy with you, you send her to me. Ain’t no shotgun-lock gonna get in the way of your wellbein’ ‘long as I’m around.”

She rose to her feet, a hand on Dusty’s shoulder for support. “Thank you, I- I just need some time. Time, to think, and time to process. I’ll go meet hawthorne, and then I think I’m going to head to venus to meditate.

“What’s on venus?” Stone asked.

“Nothing in particular. I just like the scenery. It keeps me calm.” she smiled at him, and was off.

They watched her as she walked down the corridor.

“I hope she’ll be ok”

Dusty’s demeanor went back to its usual dryness. “She’s gonna have to be. With what’s coming, she’ll need be in her best shape. That time she spent with ol’ bat wings hit her pretty hard, seems like.”  
Stone nodded. “Devrim’s gonna have his hands full. I’m sure she’ll love the tea, at least.”

“Don’t see why people like it,” Dusty said with a sigh. “Gimme a good bottle’a whisky any day.”

Stone clapped him on the shoulder and went on his way. Although he’d never admit it, Dusty was happy they were finally back together.


End file.
